DVD Review: Wedding Crashers

John Beckwith (Wilson) and Jeremy Grey (Vaughn), Washington D.C.’s top divorce mediators and lifelong best friends, have never met a wedding they couldn’t charm their way into. Guided by a secret set of “wedding crashing rules,” the pair attends a different wedding – and romances different bridesmaids – every week. But, when they crash the social event of the season, John falls for the daughter (McAdams) of an influential and eccentric politician (Walken) and decides to break the “rules” in pursuit of her love. What results is a wild weekend at her family’s palatial estate where the ultimate “crashers” quickly find themselves in way over their heads!

Review:
In the low-brow comedy Wedding Crashers, Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn prove to be a natural comic duo. The unstoppable pair play a couple of seasoned Wedding Crashers who have perfected the art of the crash and have done so quite efficiently for several years until Wilson breaks, quite possibly, the most important rule of crashing weddings. During what will be their farewell crash for the season, Wilson throws caution to the wind and forgets the rulebook and his duty to his partner, Vaughn, when he falls for a bridesmaid played by Rachel McAdams who is, as always, delightful in the film. Unfortunately for Wilson, it appears that McAdams is committed to a cheating, Ivey League jackass which, subsequently, leads to Vaughn and Wilson spending a weekend at the coastal home of McAdams’ father (who is also the US Treasury Secretary) played by Christopher Walken. Needless to say, hilarity ensues. With charismatic performances which accentuate the buddy-comedy tomfoolery, coupled with fast-paced dialogue, Vaughn and Wilson mesh brilliantly as co-stars. There’s even a guest appearance by Will Ferrell who plays Vaughn’s mentor, and the original innovator of crashing weddings. Ferrell’s most memorable performances seem to consist of smaller, supporting roles and his appearance in Wedding Crashers is no exception. For a film that’s so recent, it’s often difficult to ascertain just how Wedding Crashers stacks up to such comedy classics as Animal House, Stripes, and Fletch. I can say, however, I was pleasantly surprised when I left the theatre after seeing the movie basically on a whim. Wedding Crashers is reckless, a little raunchy and low-brow and, I believe, stays true to the comic releases that were inspired in the years following Animal House. It seems that, recently, films such as Old School, Dodgeball, and Wedding Crashers have filled a void that’s been left vacant since the golden days of the American comedy. How does it stack up to the classics? Only time will tell… but, based on its own merits, Wedding Crashers is highly recommended if you’re in the moods for a great time, and great laughs.

Review by Emma Loggins

Grade: A+
Staff Favorite

Official site: http://www.weddingcrashersmovie.com/
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